Snippets of Singapore's Life
Sharing some sights of Singapore as the game feels very monotonous to me. To start off, this is a Peking opera I watch over the weekend. The stunt work of the Monkey King was impressive. http...
Forum Discussion
Sharing some food stuff I ate at hawker centres recently
https://i.imgur.com/Yo3d4K2.jpg
Minced meat and Meat ball soup noodle. This is quite unique to a handful of stalls and cannot be found in every hawker centre. The usual kind is eaten dry with chilli.
https://i.imgur.com/7oYMcCS.jpg
Glutinous rice balls aka Tangyuan, Chinese words meaning soup balls, aka AhBalling, a teochew word meaning Duck Mother's Balls.
This dessert has been around for a long time and we used to make it ourselves without fillings. It was then a must eat during Dōngzhì Festival or Winter Solstice Festival in late Dec. It was used as offerings to ancestors. Also the roundness signifies a gathering of family.
It used to be in white or pink using colourings. The balls have evolved to contain fillings. The most common ones are peanuts, seasme seeds, Yam paste, Red bean paste. The modern ones may include matcha or chocolate.
In my mum's time, we just use sweetened soup base with pandan leaves. It has evolved to have ginger, peanut and almond in some stalls. Peanuts base is the most popular.
This is served hot. Not commonly available.
https://i.imgur.com/uJ0mxqW.jpg
The stall which I bought the Tangyuan from. There was a long queue.
https://i.imgur.com/uAMrnVt.jpg
Japanese curry chicken cutlet
https://i.imgur.com/cOp5nDd.jpg
Ba Ku Teh aka Pork Ribs soup
https://i.imgur.com/HcuZ4In.jpg
Part of the four packets of durian I bought. I am controlling myself not to buy anymore for cost reasons. This was black thorn variety and was sold at 28 SGD but at end of day bargaining, I managed to buy 4 for 50SGD. The more expensive and freshest way of eating was to buy the fruit that was priced by per kilo and they would open it on the spot for you.
https://i.imgur.com/Achh3ft.jpg
A fish soup porridge. But actually they just pour the hot contents onto white rice. This is a teochew style fish porridge.
https://i.imgur.com/PY7G9G1.jpg
Tom Yum Seafood
https://i.imgur.com/PQoDsnI.jpg
A dessert of tofu pudding with Gingko nuts served warm. Drink is grass jelly drink, a kind of herbal thing that is supposed to be very cooling to the body.
https://i.imgur.com/jkBIAdm.jpg
A old lady with possibly osteoporosis back helping to clear plates and clean tables In Singapore, it is common to see old people working as the country is not strong on welfare and people are expected to feed themselves. Old people without the support of children would try to continue working. You can frequently see them working in jobs of cleaning and plates retrievals.
https://i.imgur.com/aeJ0G45.jpg
Pork porridge again with fried fritters
https://i.imgur.com/ujsAbVN.jpg
Satay Bee hoon. Getting very uncommon these days. It has unique ingredients like squid, Kang Kong (kind of vegetables), cockles (some stop offering cockles though). I last ate this long long time ago, maybe a decade.
https://i.imgur.com/azRGfcH.jpg
I ate one third of this before I took the picture. Lotus roots soup with pork ribs.
https://i.imgur.com/OpXhwV1.jpg
A two piece KFC chicken meal under promotion. But they didn't include coleslaw for promotion.
https://i.imgur.com/T5ViOGJ.jpg
A pig liver, kidney mee sua (noodle). Soup is herbal like. Not very common.
https://i.imgur.com/7UkVUeX.jpg
Thai black pepper beef basil
https://i.imgur.com/DkmTFss.jpg
Tau Suan, a mung bean dessert with fried fritters. Served warm. This might be the most traditional dessert here. A favourite of grown ups and seniors.
https://i.imgur.com/enQvibd.jpg
Hor Fun which means River noodles. By default they will serve white flat noodles, in my case I ordered it as bee hoon, single strands white noodle.
https://i.imgur.com/mMKZAMw.jpg
Kway Chap. Mixed pig organs parts. Eaten with Kway, a very broad flat white noodles. I am usually not full when eating this and ordered an additional bowl of Kway.
https://i.imgur.com/kKILdEa.jpg
Big prawn noodle dry. When eating Prawn at hawker centre, they usually do not de vein them properly. Most people just eat it anyway. I will try to de vein it if I remember.
Once I eat in an very expensive Japanese restaurant and my raw prawn was served without being de veined too. I wondered why and I regretted that I didn't ask.
https://i.imgur.com/0Rqptry.jpg
Pork porridge again.
https://i.imgur.com/93u5XO9.jpg
Chendol or cendol. Another very popular dessert here. Rich in coconut milk and palm sugar syrup ( gula Melaka). I ate from a air con stall that specialises in food from Penang Malaysia. Penang Malaysia supposedly has very good cendol.
https://i.imgur.com/Csn3IyU.jpg
Old Chang Kee Curry puff. A pastry that has been around for a long time since the fifties. It is most famous for its curry puff original flavour. Though its price has doubled in the last ten over years. They can be found in multiple places here. When there is a mall, there would be one. They also opened a branch in UK. I wonder how is it doing there.
By the way, today is the first day of the seventh month of the lunar calendar. It is the hungry ghost month. In this month, the gates of hell will be opened and the spirits would be having a one month holiday. Taoists families and even business owners would be making offerings and prayers to random spirits by the roadsides and also to their own ancestors. Incense papers would be burnt and the night air would have smell of smoke. Joss sticks and candles would be lit up. People generally would not take photos of these activities.
Activities would be most intense on the first day, fifteen day and the last day of the month.
https://i.imgur.com/RUveCyv.jpg
When we walked, we would be careful not to kick on the offering of food, snacks and fruits on the ground. If you ever stepped or kicked into one, it is best to immediately spit out some saliva and said some prayers.
People would avoid doing big auspicious activities and businesses during this month. Swimming is highly discouraged as swimming spirits might be out in force to look for victims.
In normal times, there would be open air concerts and banquets organised by temples and business communities to appease the spirits. These concerts are known as Getai meaning music stages. They tend to be temporary wooden stages erected for the occasion. Performers would be dressed in gaudy costumes and in between songs, they may crack naughty jokes or deliver some educational messages targeted at seniors. Songs are mostly in hokkien, Chinese and some Cantonese.
https://i.imgur.com/0RKOFB7.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/wQLWbn6.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/BLBDXhc.jpg
Sunshine Cola. A young and uprising Getai performer that hopefully could ensnare younger audiences and keep the culture alive
But this year there would be no live audience Getai due to COVID-19. But virtual online ones would take place.
Last night on the eve of the month, I was specifically reminded to be home and not to be out after midnight. The vibes would be strongest on the eve.
https://i.imgur.com/e1Ev7g5.jpg
In the midst of Covid 19, everywhere we go, we need to scan a QR code for contact tracing. Someone made a joke that even the spirits need to scan. The English written is in the form of Singapore style Singlish. Wa Lau is a very common exclamation here meaning Oh my father!
https://i.imgur.com/2rk4ePS.jpg
This joke depicts a king of hell giving instructions that spirits need to wear masks when out for holidays.
Arbo is a Singlish sort of meaning otherwise.
The incense papers merchants even make masks as part of the offerings for the spirits.
On 22 Aug 2020, Divers from the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) found a 14-year-old male teenager’s body in the waters off Changi Beach Park on Saturday. During Japanese Occupation, Changi Beach was one of the key sites used the the imperial soldiers to massacre the Chinese men. For a long time it is not a very popular place to go to, especially at night.
Further Update from the Local Today Newspaper
SINGAPORE — A 14-year-old boy drowned while swimming in the waters off Changi Beach Park on Saturday (Aug 22).
Divers from the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) retrieved his body 15m from the shoreline and he was pronounced dead on the scene by a paramedic.
In a media statement, SCDF said it received a call for water rescue assistance at Changi Beach Park on Saturday at about 3.30pm.
TODAY understands that the boy who drowned was part of a group of six male teenagers fishing and swimming at the beach.
https://i.imgur.com/Yo3d4K2.jpg
Minced meat and Meat ball soup noodle. This is quite unique to a handful of stalls and cannot be found in every hawker centre. The usual kind is eaten dry with chilli.
https://i.imgur.com/7oYMcCS.jpg
Glutinous rice balls aka Tangyuan, Chinese words meaning soup balls, aka AhBalling, a teochew word meaning Duck Mother's Balls.
This dessert has been around for a long time and we used to make it ourselves without fillings. It was then a must eat during Dōngzhì Festival or Winter Solstice Festival in late Dec. It was used as offerings to ancestors. Also the roundness signifies a gathering of family.
It used to be in white or pink using colourings. The balls have evolved to contain fillings. The most common ones are peanuts, seasme seeds, Yam paste, Red bean paste. The modern ones may include matcha or chocolate.
In my mum's time, we just use sweetened soup base with pandan leaves. It has evolved to have ginger, peanut and almond in some stalls. Peanuts base is the most popular.
This is served hot. Not commonly available.
https://i.imgur.com/uJ0mxqW.jpg
The stall which I bought the Tangyuan from. There was a long queue.
https://i.imgur.com/uAMrnVt.jpg
Japanese curry chicken cutlet
https://i.imgur.com/cOp5nDd.jpg
Ba Ku Teh aka Pork Ribs soup
https://i.imgur.com/HcuZ4In.jpg
Part of the four packets of durian I bought. I am controlling myself not to buy anymore for cost reasons. This was black thorn variety and was sold at 28 SGD but at end of day bargaining, I managed to buy 4 for 50SGD. The more expensive and freshest way of eating was to buy the fruit that was priced by per kilo and they would open it on the spot for you.
https://i.imgur.com/Achh3ft.jpg
A fish soup porridge. But actually they just pour the hot contents onto white rice. This is a teochew style fish porridge.
https://i.imgur.com/PY7G9G1.jpg
Tom Yum Seafood
https://i.imgur.com/PQoDsnI.jpg
A dessert of tofu pudding with Gingko nuts served warm. Drink is grass jelly drink, a kind of herbal thing that is supposed to be very cooling to the body.
https://i.imgur.com/jkBIAdm.jpg
A old lady with possibly osteoporosis back helping to clear plates and clean tables In Singapore, it is common to see old people working as the country is not strong on welfare and people are expected to feed themselves. Old people without the support of children would try to continue working. You can frequently see them working in jobs of cleaning and plates retrievals.
https://i.imgur.com/aeJ0G45.jpg
Pork porridge again with fried fritters
https://i.imgur.com/ujsAbVN.jpg
Satay Bee hoon. Getting very uncommon these days. It has unique ingredients like squid, Kang Kong (kind of vegetables), cockles (some stop offering cockles though). I last ate this long long time ago, maybe a decade.
https://i.imgur.com/azRGfcH.jpg
I ate one third of this before I took the picture. Lotus roots soup with pork ribs.
https://i.imgur.com/OpXhwV1.jpg
A two piece KFC chicken meal under promotion. But they didn't include coleslaw for promotion.
https://i.imgur.com/T5ViOGJ.jpg
A pig liver, kidney mee sua (noodle). Soup is herbal like. Not very common.
https://i.imgur.com/7UkVUeX.jpg
Thai black pepper beef basil
https://i.imgur.com/DkmTFss.jpg
Tau Suan, a mung bean dessert with fried fritters. Served warm. This might be the most traditional dessert here. A favourite of grown ups and seniors.
https://i.imgur.com/enQvibd.jpg
Hor Fun which means River noodles. By default they will serve white flat noodles, in my case I ordered it as bee hoon, single strands white noodle.
https://i.imgur.com/mMKZAMw.jpg
Kway Chap. Mixed pig organs parts. Eaten with Kway, a very broad flat white noodles. I am usually not full when eating this and ordered an additional bowl of Kway.
https://i.imgur.com/kKILdEa.jpg
Big prawn noodle dry. When eating Prawn at hawker centre, they usually do not de vein them properly. Most people just eat it anyway. I will try to de vein it if I remember.
Once I eat in an very expensive Japanese restaurant and my raw prawn was served without being de veined too. I wondered why and I regretted that I didn't ask.
https://i.imgur.com/0Rqptry.jpg
Pork porridge again.
https://i.imgur.com/93u5XO9.jpg
Chendol or cendol. Another very popular dessert here. Rich in coconut milk and palm sugar syrup ( gula Melaka). I ate from a air con stall that specialises in food from Penang Malaysia. Penang Malaysia supposedly has very good cendol.
https://i.imgur.com/Csn3IyU.jpg
Old Chang Kee Curry puff. A pastry that has been around for a long time since the fifties. It is most famous for its curry puff original flavour. Though its price has doubled in the last ten over years. They can be found in multiple places here. When there is a mall, there would be one. They also opened a branch in UK. I wonder how is it doing there.
By the way, today is the first day of the seventh month of the lunar calendar. It is the hungry ghost month. In this month, the gates of hell will be opened and the spirits would be having a one month holiday. Taoists families and even business owners would be making offerings and prayers to random spirits by the roadsides and also to their own ancestors. Incense papers would be burnt and the night air would have smell of smoke. Joss sticks and candles would be lit up. People generally would not take photos of these activities.
Activities would be most intense on the first day, fifteen day and the last day of the month.
https://i.imgur.com/RUveCyv.jpg
When we walked, we would be careful not to kick on the offering of food, snacks and fruits on the ground. If you ever stepped or kicked into one, it is best to immediately spit out some saliva and said some prayers.
People would avoid doing big auspicious activities and businesses during this month. Swimming is highly discouraged as swimming spirits might be out in force to look for victims.
In normal times, there would be open air concerts and banquets organised by temples and business communities to appease the spirits. These concerts are known as Getai meaning music stages. They tend to be temporary wooden stages erected for the occasion. Performers would be dressed in gaudy costumes and in between songs, they may crack naughty jokes or deliver some educational messages targeted at seniors. Songs are mostly in hokkien, Chinese and some Cantonese.
https://i.imgur.com/0RKOFB7.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/wQLWbn6.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/BLBDXhc.jpg
Sunshine Cola. A young and uprising Getai performer that hopefully could ensnare younger audiences and keep the culture alive
But this year there would be no live audience Getai due to COVID-19. But virtual online ones would take place.
Last night on the eve of the month, I was specifically reminded to be home and not to be out after midnight. The vibes would be strongest on the eve.
https://i.imgur.com/e1Ev7g5.jpg
In the midst of Covid 19, everywhere we go, we need to scan a QR code for contact tracing. Someone made a joke that even the spirits need to scan. The English written is in the form of Singapore style Singlish. Wa Lau is a very common exclamation here meaning Oh my father!
https://i.imgur.com/2rk4ePS.jpg
This joke depicts a king of hell giving instructions that spirits need to wear masks when out for holidays.
Arbo is a Singlish sort of meaning otherwise.
The incense papers merchants even make masks as part of the offerings for the spirits.
On 22 Aug 2020, Divers from the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) found a 14-year-old male teenager’s body in the waters off Changi Beach Park on Saturday. During Japanese Occupation, Changi Beach was one of the key sites used the the imperial soldiers to massacre the Chinese men. For a long time it is not a very popular place to go to, especially at night.
Further Update from the Local Today Newspaper
SINGAPORE — A 14-year-old boy drowned while swimming in the waters off Changi Beach Park on Saturday (Aug 22).
Divers from the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) retrieved his body 15m from the shoreline and he was pronounced dead on the scene by a paramedic.
In a media statement, SCDF said it received a call for water rescue assistance at Changi Beach Park on Saturday at about 3.30pm.
TODAY understands that the boy who drowned was part of a group of six male teenagers fishing and swimming at the beach.
